Pakistan discusses Afghanistan peace process with US

Army Chief General Raheel Sharif on Monday held a meeting with top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan General John Campbell and the acting American Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Jarrett Blanc, reported Dawn online.

“During the meeting, matters of mutual interest and regional security along Pak-Afghan border and reconciliation process in Afghanistan were discussed,” the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

The meeting coincided with intensification of offensives by both Afghanistan government forces and militants.

It happened on a day when the Taliban staged a major jailbreak in Afghanistan’s Ghazni province freeing over 355 inmates, including some militant leaders.

Prospects for resumption of the reconciliation process remain grim. The Afghanistan reconciliation process that began in Pakistan in July got suspended weeks later because of the disclosure about the death of Taliban chief Mullah Omar.

The subsequent surge in violence in Afghanistan renewed acrimony between Kabul and Islamabad and made the resumption of the process even more uncertain.